Recap-Day 2 - Karen Wells

Two girls play "Rock, Paper, Scissors" in the Athens market.

This is our tour guide for Athens. The students thought we looked like sisters. I didn't think so until I saw this photo. Notice the hats and glasses. Who knows???

The flowers in Athens are beautiful.

The gelato is spectacular!

The bridal bouquet from the wedding we "crashed" in Greece.

The graffiti that covers a lot of the buildings in Athens.

Austin writing in his journal.

Niki finds a good deal in an out-of-the-way souvenir shop.

Recap-Day 1 - Karen Wells

Since it was difficult to load pictures while we were traveling, I am going to add my favorite photo(s) from each day. Hope you enjoy!

While several of the students watched movies for 12 hours, many of us found out favorite screen was the one showing how close we were to Athens.

Greece, at last. I thought Italy would be the ultimate part of our journey, but I found that I absolutely loved Greece.

Let The Power Of The Fountain Allow Me To Return

As much as I wanted to stay, I really enjoyed the way we ended this wonderful trip. We were given the opportunity to discover Rome on our own through a scavenger hunt. We followed a map that led us to the famous and historical sights of Rome, and at those different points we had tasks that we had to complete. We walked all over the city visiting the Trevi Fountain, the Pantheon, and the Spanish Steps. It was an amazing experience to walk around our own with no guides getting a first hand view on Italian life throughout the streets and feeling the lively energy of the city. At the end of our adventurous day, we ate at the Hard Rock Cafe and told stories of the lifetime memories we made. Then we went back to our hotel and spent more time together before getting ready to leave the city. The next morning we got up bright and early to catch our plane. As much as I wanted to stay in the beautiful city, I was ready to come home and see my family and friends. I will always be grateful for this experience, because it has inspired me in so many ways to return and to follow my dream to live in a different country attempting to dive fully into its culture and living a vastly different life than what I've known. I will continue to hope and believe that the power of throwing a coin in the Trevi Fountain will allow me to return and relive the greatest time of my life once again.

Bethany Roberson

Our Last Day in Rome

As we are on the plane coming home, the memories from Italy and Greece fill my mind. Yesterday was one of my favorite days of the entire trip because we went on a scavenger hunt through Rome. We started off the day by exploring the amazing Colosseum. I tried to imagine the 70,000 spectators shouting at the gladiators and wild animals in the games. Everything we saw in Rome was so well constructed. People took such pride and time in their artwork. I thought about the cities I have been to and I know they will not last for 2,000 or more years like the places in Rome have. On our scavenger hunt we split into two groups with maps, checkpoints, and went on our way. Some of the destinations we went to were The Spanish Steps, The Pantheon, and The Trevi Fountain to name a few. I felt like a true roman, walking the streets, eating gelato, and bargaining with the shop keepers. This was truly the trip of a lifetime. As sad as I am to leave, I am also filled with the joy of the memories and friends I made along the way.

Niki Pulliam


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Last day.... Coliseum!!

Our last day in Rome, Italy!! We started our last day by going to the Coliseum! This was by far my favorite thing to see on the trip. Just to be inside this building where the gladiators fought was an awesome feeling! After we saw the Coliseum we ate some lunch then split up to do our scavenger hunt! We had 4 hours to go around Rome to see all the historical sights. We went and saw the Forum Romanum, Capitoline Hill, Piazza Venezia, Pantheon, Piazza Navona, Castel Sant'Angelo, Piazza del Popolo, Piazza Colonna, Trevi Fountain, and the Spanish Steps. It was a great day! Just to walk the streets at your own pace and just shop! We had a lot of fun! I am so blessed to be able to go on this once in a lifetime trip. Being my age and seeing all of these historical sights is an amazing feeling! Thank you Mom, Dad, Mrs. Wells and Discovery Student Adventures.

Sarah York
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The last day in Rome

Tomorrow we head back to the United States. While we are sad to be leaving Italy, it is time to see family and friends again. The students are enjoying their last night together and will post about today's activities while they are waiting on their flights. They have been awesome bloggers and great travelers. I think they were the perfect group to travel to Greece and Italy, and I will have fond memories of them. I have known Jon for a long time and will always remember his love of meeting people and his willingness to help out the group whenever needed. He will go far in this life, and I look forward to helping him on his future medical missions. Austin has grown tremendously while on this trip. Every day I watched him take on more leadership responsibilities and will always remember his confidence when he gave his presentation before the sea turtle volunteers in Greece. I have also enjoyed his wit and great sense of humor. Bethany, what a traveler she is! She has such a sense of awe when she visits new sites. I found her to be the one I turned to whenever I experienced something that was too beautiful for words. She not only understands beauty, she feels it. Sarah was the only traveler I had never had in class. What a joy it has been to get to know her. She is full of practical information and about as dependable a kid as I have ever known. She loves learning about new places; I predict that more travel lies in her future. She could go anywhere and find her way around. Niki is my travel companion. I will miss her tremendously next year but am grateful that I have had the opportunity to travel to five countries with her. She and I share many memories, and I feel that she is going to make a huge impact on this world. Our traveling days may have come to an end, but our paths have become too entwined for us to go separate ways. She will always remain an integral part of my life. Thanks guys for a great trip. Karen Wells

The Vatican

Visiting the Vatican wasn't on my bucket list, but it should have been! How amazing the whole experience has been. Visiting the Sistene Chapel literally took my breath away. Because our guide had gone over the details of the artwork before we entered the building, I was able to pick out images that I would not have been able to before his talk. Just the sheer magnitude of the artwork and the skill involved was pretty amazing. One interesting fact I learned was that the Japanese had paid to have the paintings cleaned in the past couple of years. As part of their agreement, they have the copyright to the images. Thus, they are the only ones who can take pictures of the ceiling until 2015. We also visited Saint Peter's Basilica when Peter is buried. Twenty thousand people a day visit this site. While the area was filled with beautiful statues, we had to hurry through because of the magnitude of the crowd. We also visited a priest in Saint Ann's Church. Saint Ann was the mother of Mary and the grandmother of Jesus. The priest's talk was very informative and helped clear up some questions I had about the Catholic religion. We finished with a visit from a former Swiss Guard and witnessed the changing of the guard. Karen Wells